The activist Nelson Álvarez, known as "El Porfiao," called on the Minister of Public Health of Cuba this Monday to act as soon as possible to save the life of the two-year-old girl Ester Lianet Asprón Rey, who has been seriously ill in a hospital in Las Tunas for weeks due to the lack of a valve for hydrocephalus.
Álvarez, who is promoting a project to assist people in need in Cuba, especially sick children, published a letter on Facebook addressed to José Ángel Portal Miranda, head of the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP), in which he urged him to take immediate action to obtain the medical device that the patient urgently needs, as her health has worsened in recent weeks and her life is at risk.
"It would be regrettable to lose this two-year-old girl because of a 'little hose,' and I assure you that time will undoubtedly become her worst executioner if the delay persists," Álvarez warned in the letter, addressing the official.
The activist explained in the text details of the medical condition of the patient with hydrocephalus, admitted to the Pediatric Hospital of Las Tunas, who has been taken to the operating room six times due to the lack of the catheter she needs: a self-regulating ventricular valve, which is placed internally to drain cerebrospinal fluid.
The girl currently has a hose leading outside, which makes her vulnerable to acquiring a bacteria or infection, Álvarez has explained earlier.
“Sir, the girl is getting worse every moment, her case is something that can be resolved in the country, it only needs to be managed to acquire the said probe,” he warned in his call to the minister, and demanded him to “make the necessary arrangements in the most expedited manner to save the life of the little girl.”
El Porfiao referred to the numerous efforts that have been made to obtain the valve in another country: “We have done everything possible to resolve it abroad on our own, since it is not that expensive, but it has been impossible for us, as the responses we have received are that they do not ship or only sell to hospitals.”
Although the efforts have been considerable, he admitted: "We have run out of options, despite gathering the necessary budget for the purchase of that valve."
Álvarez stated that the girl's family "is desperate, just like most of our people, because the issue has gone viral on social media, even internationally," and appealed to the minister's understanding of "the importance and urgency that the case of the girl Ester requires."
"In انتظار de a response and even more, of immediate actions," expressed the activist at the end of his letter.
The campaign to help save the life of little Ester started weeks ago on social media and has managed to raise the necessary funds for the purchase of medical supplies, through two bank accounts and a petition on the GoFundMe platform.
However, it has been impossible to finalize the purchase of the valve so that it can be placed on the patient as quickly as possible. The delay conspires against her life.
The girl underwent her sixth surgical operation on September 6, due to a blockage in the tube placed in the absence of the valve, which caused fluid retention and worsened the hydrocephalus.
Álvarez asked for prayers for his life. “Friends, my heart is bewildered by this news received just seconds ago. As always, the wait, the damn wait, the absurd wait. God, do not abandon Ester at this crucial moment, in you we place our trust,” he pleaded.
On Saturday, it was reported that the girl was "stable, waiting for all the corresponding parameters for this type of pathology to stabilize."
"Let's trust in God and in the medical staff attending to the little one. Everyone in prayer for her quick recovery," he asked.
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